This column is sponsored by Arlington Arts/Arlington Cultural Affairs, a division of Arlington Economic Development.

Our new capacity-building series for artists and arts organizations is off to a great start!

There are several more opportunities for you to sharpen the skills critical to successfully navigating the business and communications aspects of your creative endeavors. The remaining sessions cover cultural intelligence, arts marketing insights, creating content in a digital world and more. All workshops are virtual, except for the final program, which is held in person at Arlington’s Studio Pause.

The workshops are presented by the Northern Virginia Local Arts Agencies (NVLAA) consortium. Comprised of the arts agencies of Arlington County, the City of Alexandria and Fairfax County, the group is designed to expand resources and opportunities for artists and arts organizations throughout the NOVA area.

Below is an overview of the series of workshops offered through spring 2024. Panelists and additional information for several of the programs is forthcoming. For more details and to register, click here.

Cultural Intelligence for Arts Organizations and Artists with Brighter Strategies 

Feb. 8, 12-1:30 p.m.
Facilitated by: Ann Romosz of Brighter Strategies

In an increasingly interconnected and diverse world, navigating and thriving in culturally rich environments has become an essential skill. This workshop will empower the participants with the tools, knowledge and insights needed to develop a heightened awareness of different cultures, enhance cross-cultural communication skills, and cultivate a deep sense of cultural sensitivity. Whether you’re interacting with colleagues, clients or partners from around the globe, the principles and practices you’ll discuss here will enable you to foster respectful and effective collaborations while fostering an inclusive and harmonious environment.

Nailing the Application: A Guide to Artist Open Calls

Feb. 22, 12-1:30 p.m.
Facilitated by: New York Foundation for the Arts

Artists are constantly applying for exhibitions and residencies. Many creative opportunities start with an open call. How can you ensure you put your best foot forward when submitting these applications?

Drawing upon the perspective of arts decision-makers who run residencies, jury exhibitions and review project proposals, this panel discussion will cover:

  • Where to find open calls for art exhibitions, residencies and more
  • How to determine if an opportunity is right for you
  • Tips for compiling and presenting your work samples
  • What reviewers like to see in the application statement/narrative
  • Insights into the behind-the-scenes review process

Promotional Partnerships: Creative Ways to Attract New Audiences
March 7, 12-1:30 p.m.

The marketing leaders of Arlington Cultural Affairs, Arts Fairfax and the Office of the Arts, City of Alexandria will highlight unique promotional partnerships that widen the exposure of an arts activity through shared resources. They’ll guide you through interactive exercises to strengthen your ability to tell your story, identify a prospective partner, and grow your project’s reach.

Marketing Tools of the Trade with Substantial Art and Music

March 21, 12-1:30 p.m.
Facilitated by: Substantial Art & Music

Substantial Art & Music will provide artists and arts organizations with tools in social media marketing and analytics and passive income/monetization for both visual and performing arts.

Creating Content in a Digital World

April 4, 12-1:30 p.m.
Facilitated by: New York Foundation for the Arts

In today’s digital world, creatives are often expected to create content representing their artistic practice and their art itself. Yet most artists are not professional content producers, or at least didn’t start that way.

This workshop will explore how artists can professionally and creatively develop content to build their audience online. Expert Molaundo Jones, who runs the marketing initiatives for a world-renowned organization for producing creative content, Art21, will lead the presentation as Senior Director of Communications and Partnerships. Jones will discuss strategies for developing social media and YouTube content and provide time for Q&A.

Community Engagement with Studio Pause

May 2, 5-6:30 p.m.
In-person at Studio Pause, 4710 Columbia Pike, Arlington, VA 22204
Facilitated by: Sushmita Mazumdar of Studio Pause

Artists and arts organizations get an overview of ways to engage the community they are trying to serve. Instructor Sushmita Mazumdar will share how her artist’s projects and others she has observed or been part of hope to use art to achieve long-term outcomes, try new processes and build relationships.


Plans for the summer just got more exciting!

Last week, Arlington’s Department of Parks & Recreation (DPR) launched the 2024 Summer Camp Catalog with ten weeks of camp opportunities from June 17-August 23. Sign up begins with early registration on Monday, February 5 for those who are enrolled in DPR’s fee reduction program.

Registration then opens to all Arlington County residents for partner camps starting on Wednesday, February 14, and DPR camps on Wednesday, February 21. Registration starts at noon each day, so visit the summer camp webpage for information on how to be prepared.

Parks & Recreation Camps at a Price You Can Afford

DPR’s fee reduction program helps everyone, everywhere, every day!

Don’t qualify for fee reductions? The County has options for those experiencing financial hardships. Whether you have a short-term setback or something longer-term, explore the options here.

Apply for Summer Camp Jobs Today!

Arlington County is looking for creative, enthusiastic, and committed people to join our summer camp staff. Apply for roles in creative arts, early childhood, gymnastics, therapeutic recreation, nature and history, and more! Available positions are great for teachers, college students, and anyone who has a passion for working with kids. Explore the opportunities and apply today!

For all things summer camp, visit the summer camp webpage.

Want a sneak peek at the summer fun ahead? Take a look from the camper and employee points of view.


Each week, “Just Reduced” spotlights properties in Arlington County whose price have been cut over the previous week. The market summary is crafted by Arlington Realty, Inc. Maximize your real estate investment with the team by visiting www.arlingtonrealtyinc.com or calling 703-836-6000 today!

Please note: While Arlington Realty, Inc. provides this information for the community, it may not be the listing company of these homes.

As of January 22, there are 90 detached homes, 17 townhouses and 99 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 15 homes experienced a price reduction in the past week, including:

1021 S. Dinwiddie Street

Please note that this is solely a selection of Just Reduced properties available in Arlington County. For a complete list of properties within your target budget and specifications, contact Arlington Realty, Inc.


Trinity Preschool is now accepting registrations for the fall of 2024!

Trinity is a part-day, learn-through-play program nestled in a quiet neighborhood near Virginia Hospital Center. Our teachers offer engaging and fun activities that allow children to develop academically and socially.

Steeped in years of tradition, Trinity boasts a beautiful facility, extensive grounds and easy parking.

Students play in our large, fenced playground, outdoor learning spaces and in the full-size indoor gym. We also feature music class every day with a dedicated music teacher. Throughout the year, we offer enrichment programs on a variety of topics.

We have small-size classes for students aged 2.5 through 5 years old with an outstanding Pre-K program. Trinity has an exceptional and well-qualified staff with an average of 15+ years of teaching experience.

For more information or set up a tour, on our website at trinitypreschoolarlington.com or call us at 703-536-5616.

Trinity Preschool is hosting an Open House on Saturday, January 20 from 10 a.m. until noon. No RSVP required… just swing by and see what makes Trinity so special. If you are not able to make that date, check our website to schedule a tour.


This regularly scheduled sponsored Q&A column is written by Eli Tucker, Arlington-based Realtor and Arlington resident. Please submit your questions to him via email for response in future columns. Video summaries of some articles can be found on YouTube on the Eli Residential channelEnjoy!

Question: How did the D.C. area housing market perform in 2023?

Answer: I will publish my annual Arlington housing market review in the next 2-3 weeks, but in the meantime I thought it would be helpful to share a higher level view of how our regional D.C. area housing market performed in 2023 and what it looked like entering 2024.

Home Sale Volume Crashed

The most significant market trend was the steep drop in total homes sold in 2023, with total sales in the Greater D.C. Metro about 25% lower than the historical average and more than 40% below 2022 sales volume. The drop is housing units sold was not the result of lower demand, in fact, demand remained quite strong despite interest rates spending most of the year at 7-8%+.

The decrease was driven by the lack of supply, with very few homes hitting the market for sale, primarily due to homeowners not wanting to give up their low mortgage rates. The second chart highlights the extent of the supply problem, with nearly two straight years of mostly double-digit year-over-year decreases in monthly new listing volume. The only positive year-over-year reading in the past two years was a .4% increase in new listings in February 2022.

Prices Increased at a Lower Pace

Normally with supply so low one would expect to see prices increase sharply, but high interest rates made most buyers reluctant to overpay and kept price appreciation modest at 2.5% on the year, well below the historical average of 4.3%. Appreciation in the Greater D.C. Metro market came in just under the national average of 2.9%.

(more…)


Address: 1007 N. Kensington Street
Neighborhood: Westover Towns
Type: 4 BR, 4 (+1 half) BA townhouse — 2,000 sq. ft.
Listed: $1,073,000

Noteworthy: All brick 4 level townhouse in Cardinal, Swanson, Yorktown pyramid

Located about a block from the bike and walking trails, this light filled townhouse offers four finished levels of flexible space and a two car attached garage.

Enter into the main level of the home featuring wood floors, high ceilings, and tall windows. The living room flows into the dining room, kitchen and family area. A powder room completes this level. Upstairs, the primary bedroom has a walk in closet and private bath with oversized shower and double sink vanity. The second bedroom has a double door closet and an en suite bathroom. Conveniently located on the upstairs level, is the laundry room as well as a linen closet in the hall.

On the top floor, there is a private third bedroom and bathroom with charming dormered ceilings. Entry to the roof terrace is on this level with space for dining, grilling, and gatherings. The lower level has the fourth bedroom and bathroom which is ideal for an office, au pair, or private space for a teen. A large coat closet with shoe storage is on this level along with an under-the-stairs storage area.

The two car garage houses the utility room and has space for bikes and outdoor equipment. The areaway behind the home is a popular play spot for children living in the community. Near Westover Village’s shops, library, restaurants, service, and Sunday Farmer’s Market. Easy access to Washington, Rosslyn-Ballston business corridor, military, government, and business center, and National Airport. Good reverse commute to Tysons and Dulles tech corridor and airport.

Listed by:
Betsy Twigg — McEnearney Associates
[email protected]
(703) 967-4391


Address: 2927 S Columbus Street
Neighborhood: Fairlington Villages
Type: 2 BR, 2 BA townhouse — 1,383 sq. ft.
Listed: $579,900

Noteworthy: End-unit townhouse in Fairlington Villages with large patio and great parking

Updated end-unit townhouse with nearly 1,400 SqFt across three levels (Clarendon II model) featuring a spacious back patio and plenty of parking and sited on a beautifully landscaped common front courtyard. The entire home has been freshly painted and is completely move-in ready with updated bathrooms and kitchen, and recently refinished hardwood floors. Unassigned permit parking is available in the off-street parking lot for homeowners and guests and street parking is readily available without a permit.

What Makes This Neighborhood Stand Out?

Fairlington Villages offers a community unlike any other in Arlington with its expansive green space, wide streets lined by sidewalks and mature trees, six pools, playgrounds, and tennis courts just a short stroll from restaurants, groceries, and retail shops in The Village at Shirlington.

What Makes This Location Stand Out?

Walking distance to The Villages at Shirlington and a short drive to two airports (Reagan National and Dulles International), Washington, D.C., Tysons, Old Town Alexandria, the Pentagon, Amazon HQ2, and all major Northern Virginia highways. There are multiple bus stops in the neighborhood for easy commuting and access to Metro.

Take a virtual tour today!

Listed by:
Eli Tucker — Eli Residential Group of RLAH @properties
[email protected]
(703) 539-2529


This sponsored column is by Law Office of James Montana PLLC. All questions about it should be directed to James Montana, Esq., Doran Shemin, Esq., Janice Chen, Esq., and Austen Soare, Esq., practicing attorneys at The Law Office of James Montana PLLC, an immigration-focused law firm located in Falls Church, Virginia. The legal information given here is general in nature. If you want legal advice, contact us for an appointment.

Not All Crystal Balls Portend Good Things! (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

What’s going to happen in the world of immigration law this year? We’re here with our predictions — and here to eat humble pie about how wrong we were last year the last time we tried our hand at prognostication.

Without further ado, here are our predictions for this year.

Prediction 1: Congress will pass a Border/Ukraine stopgap bill which slightly, theoretically tightens the process for applying for asylum; the new law will have little practical effect.

According to well-sourced immigration reporters at The Washington Times and The New York Post, the framework currently under discussion includes the following provisions:

  • Capped border flows at a relatively high level (5,000 entrants per day = just under 2M per year), after which enhanced expulsion powers would come into effect.
  • Government-funded representation for unaccompanied minors in removal proceedings.
  • The “credible fear” standard for initial interviews of asylum seekers at the border will be replaced by a higher “reasonable possibility” standard.

We are extremely skeptical that such a bill will become law in its current form. Why?

  • When was the last time you saw a federally-funded expansion of the right to counsel — which, as we’ve previously pointed out, immigration court defendants currently do not have — for indigent defendants?
  • The proposed caps on border flows are remarkably high. The caps, as best we can tell, would only apply to those who approach border crossing points to seek a credible fear interview, and not to those who attempt to enter without inspection. (To be clear: this is speculation based on leaks: the text of the proposed legislation hasn’t been made public, and the drafters deny that it is accurate.)
  • In a sample month last year — September 2023 — only about 50,000 encounters happened at border crossing points; that’s less than 2,000 per day. If our interpretation of the data is correct, capping entries at 5,000 per day is like sensibly limiting yourself to eight drumsticks at Thanksgiving. Immigration hawks aren’t fools.

Instead, we predict that a much less ambitious bill will become law.

  • We predict that the “credible fear” standard will be replaced by the “reasonable possibility” standard. In theory, this would lead to asylum seekers being denied the right to a hearing if a border official finds that the asylum seeker has a 49% chance (or less) of prevailing on the merits. In practice… well, read on.
  • We predict that the President’s authority to exercise parole will be capped in some way — perhaps an annual cap on total admissions. The Biden Administration’s vigorous use of parole to admit nationals of particular countries would thereby be curtailed.
  • We predict that DHS will get more funding. DHS funding is the cowbell of immigration legislation. If the American voter wants more cowbell, we should probably give him more cowbell!

Prediction 2: Net flows will remain high.

If we’re right about the shape of proposed legislation, there should be very little change in actual flows. It’s one thing for Congress to make pronouncements about “reasonable possibility” rather than “credible fear,” but it’s quite another thing for actual human beings — in this case, CBP officials — to enforce the new policy. CBP is in the unenviable position of adjudicating thousands of asylum claims per day using non-attorney staff in a constantly shifting legal and physical landscape. It is unreasonable to expect technical changes at the top to filter down quickly or clearly.

Prediction 3: There is a Presidential Election in November.

After the compromise passes — as we hope it will, in some form, to support Ukraine’s fight for independence — there won’t be any serious changes to immigration policy until 2025, because there’s a presidential election in November, and that tends to freeze all serious discussion in Congress.

Should you trust our predictions? The evidence suggests… maybe!

In January 2022, we made three big predictions.

  • USCIS will raise its fees. Boy, were we wrong! USCIS didn’t raise its fees in 2022 or But this year — this year it’s going to happen!
  • Immigration Courts will be open for business post-COVID. We were right about that, but, in fairness to us, that was an easy call.
  • Asylum Backlogs will get worse. We were right about that, too — but that was an even easier call.

Don’t trust our political insight. Do trust our legal advice. If you need an immigration attorney, be in touch and we’ll do our very best for you!

As always, we welcome your comments and will do our best to respond.


Work on your mental health with Peaceful Mind Solutions.

Discover a path to emotional well-being through our expert psychotherapy services. Our dedicated team of licensed therapists is here to guide you on your journey to a healthier, more peaceful mind.

At Peaceful Mind Solutions, we understand that life’s challenges can take a toll on your mental health. Whether you’re facing stress, anxiety, depression, or simply seeking personal growth, our therapists are committed to providing a safe and supportive space for you to explore and overcome your concerns.

Take the first step towards a brighter future with our exclusive offer: a complimentary 15-minute consultation. During this session, you’ll have the opportunity to connect with one of our experienced therapists, discuss your goals, and learn more about how our tailored approach can benefit you.

Why choose Peaceful Mind Solutions?

  • Compassionate and skilled therapists
  • Personalized treatment plans
  • Confidential and judgment-free environment
  • Proven strategies for lasting change

Invest in your mental well-being and embrace the peace that comes with self-discovery. Call us today to schedule your free consultation and take that crucial step towards a more balanced and harmonious life.

Peaceful Mind Solutions — Your Partner on the Path to Inner Peace. Visit us at www.peacefulmindsolutions.com or call us at (703)-994-0300


This article was written by Arlington Economic Development.

In the bustling heart of Arlington, local businesses have a unique opportunity to make a meaningful impact on their community by supporting local nonprofits.

One such business partnership at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington (AWLA) is making a big difference in the lives of animals and the people who care for them. AWLA’s Corporate Animal Care Crew offers local businesses the chance to not only give back but also foster team-building and community engagement. These businesses and organizations play a vital role in supporting our community, and by partnering with AWLA, they can directly contribute to the well-being of animals in need.

The Corporate Animal Care Crew program provides a hands-on experience for teams to actively participate in the daily care of animals at the shelter. This unique opportunity allows businesses to go beyond traditional philanthropy and create a lasting impact through direct involvement.

Participating in AWLA’s Corporate Care Crew program goes beyond a financial contribution. Businesses can witness the immediate impact of their efforts as they work alongside AWLA’s dedicated Animal Care Technicians. From feeding animals to cleaning kennels with a touch of “room service,” volunteers directly contribute to creating a safe and comfortable environment for the shelter’s residents.

In the past, companies like Accenture and Deloitte have spent a day at AWLA, and their employees always leave with smiles on their faces. By participating in AWLA’s Corporate Care Crew program, these companies set an example for others, encouraging a culture of giving back and community involvement.

“Participating in AWLA’s Corporate Animal Care Crew program not only allows businesses to foster teamwork and build meaningful connections within their teams but also offers a unique opportunity to contribute to the welfare of thousands of animals cared for by the League each year,” said Sam Wolbert, President and CEO of AWLA, “Through this hands-on volunteer experience, businesses can invest in their community while providing valuable support to AWLA’s mission, creating a positive impact on both team dynamics and animal well-being.”

You can join the ranks of Accenture, Deloitte and others in supporting AWLA’s mission to ensure that every animal has a chance for a healthy, happy and loving home. “Paws” for a cause and let your business lead the way in making Arlington a better place for all its residents, furry or otherwise.


View More Stories